Bloodname

The Mad Dogcame to an abrupt stop, the pilot apparently dealing with whatever had caused the sudden fire. For a moment, Aidan drew a blank. He did not know what to do. The pilot of this 'Mech would regain control of his machine and return to the battle. The two oncoming 'Mechs would arrive. Joa

He wanted to curse, but the only one strong enough among Clan Warriors was "freebirth," and his experience among freeborns had removed that oath from his vocabulary. The way this Trial of Refusal was working out seemed unfair. They had, the three of them, started out against nine. Already they had defeated five.Five was an impressive number, but in a Trial of Refusal, the challengers could win only by defeating every one of their opponents. They had come close, but that was not enough.

And his chance to win a Bloodname was riding on this Trial.

Gritting his teeth, he rejected the odds and went after the Mad Dog.Firing his LB 10-X rapidly, he was surprised to make another strong hit as the Mad Dog's right arm dropped. Aidan had hit something there, perhaps just the right clump of myomer tendons, that had disabled the arm. The Mad Dog,looking as wild as its name, rotated on its torso to face Aidan.

"Be careful, Aidan," came Joa

"What happened to the Gargoyle?"

"What do you think? It is finished. And if you have not noticed yet, the odds are now even, three against three. Of course, two of those are just entering the battle without having used up much firepower or energy."

Aidan had forgotten the childhood rhyme again until now. He had been making it up for the last couple of verses, anyway. "Three little BattleMechs, none of them new. One lost its nuts and bolts, and then there were two." If only he could concoct weapons instead of verses. One might be able to slay dragons with metaphors, but a BattleMech was another matter entirely.

* * *

Ter Roshak wished now he had not disabled his communications systems. He wanted desperately to coordinate the rest of the battle, but could not. Perhaps this was another sign of advancing age.

Ever since his 'Mech had dropped to its knees, he had been looking at things from a skewered viewpoint. Everything outside the 'Mech seemed at an angle. Although he knew that the two BattleMechs he could see were upright, they appeared to lean to their right on a sloping landscape.

The Mad Dogwas about to finish off the Summoner,Roshak could see that. Had the Summonerbeen fresh, it would have been another matter. The Mad Dogwas severely damaged, both from its battle with Ter Roshak and from its present conflict with Aidan. No matter what type of 'Mech it was, it could be beaten.

On his secondary screen, now being used to get an overhead view of the 'Mechs left in the field, Roshak saw the advancing opponents as well as Joa

Having rotated toward the Summoner,the Mad Dogrocked it with a hit from its remaining Gauss ca

* * *

Well, at least the Mad Doghad given up on Roshak and his Nova.He wondered if he would ever pilot a Novaagain. It had been the wrong choice. He had desired its maneuverability, but had ended up needing more power. Of course at that time he had not cared whether he won. Still, in a battle of three-to-one odds, the Novawas a nearly suicidal choice. Its maneuverability had only prolonged his meaningless survival. When the Mad Dogreturned its attention to him, it would take only one solid hit to topple him.

Then, he realized suddenly, there was no reason for him to make a final stand. What did he have left? He had spent all his missiles. The left-torso laser was destroyed. Only the left-arm medium lasers remained. They could erode some of the other 'Mech's open gashes, but that was about all. It was what he had, though, and a good warrior always fought with what was at hand. He activated all six medium lasers, directing four of them toward various slashes and gouges in the Mad Dog'sarmor, the other two toward the Gauss ca

Suddenly the Mad Dogwas taking fire from two directions. When it swung its arm toward the Nova,blasting it with its autoca

On his primary screen, enlarged for a closer view, Roshak saw the two untouched BattleMechs within range. The Warhawksent Aidan's Summonerinto a half-spin with pulses from its extended-range PPC, but Roshak kept the Mad Dogfrom going in for the kill with his fusillade. The heavy 'Mech had to turn its attention back to Roshak.

As Roshak steadied himself for the final shot, he lightly touched the lever of the ejection seat that he had vowed not to use even if it meant being charred to a crisp in the cockpit.

But suddenly the Mad Dogexploded. A flight of missiles glided in to demolish it with a direct hit. They had come from behind Roshak and could only have been launched from Joa

Then Roshak's 'Mech shifted abruptly, and he felt it drop further. Something, perhaps an u

* * *

"Two little BattleMechs, coming at a run. One chewed the grass, and then there was one." Joa

"Consider," Joa

"Joa

"Perhaps. But technically Ter Roshak is not yet defeated. I agree it will only take a push from a baby's finger to send him flat, but he is still upright, and upright counts. But at least we have evened up on the odds."

Another hit from the Warhawk'sER-PPC sent tremors through Aidan's cockpit. The truth was dawning on even his stubborn brain that he could not defeat this massive and efficient machine.

He might do better to surrender. The council had not formally invoked the death penalty when a